Daughter of My Dreams
by Fennelwhisker
Summary: Three moons after leaving ShadowClan and becoming ThunderClans's new medicine cat, Yellowfang finds salvation in her new apprentice, Cinderpaw. Later on, she starts seeing her as a daughter.


**Daughter of My Dreams**

Yellowfang slowly opened her orange eyes. It had been three moons since she was taken into ThunderClan. After Spottedleaf's death at the paws of Clawface, she had replaced her as a medicine cat.

Her old life in ShadowClan still haunted her. It lingered in her dreams, stalked her as if she were prey. Yellowfang was tormented by her own son, Brokenstar. She had regretted the day she had given birth to him and became his mother. His ambition and bloodlust and caused ShadowClan to spiral into chaos, resulting in her exile.

She then became a vagabond, aimlessly wandering the forest. The former ShadowClan medicine cat soon became hollow and depraved, a shell of her former self. Isolation from others had turned her into a savage beast, and that was proven when she had attacked a young ThunderClan tom who crossed paths with her.

Yellowfang eventually learned that this young tom's name was Firepaw, and he later became Fireheart. Little did she know was that this tom would completely transform her life. Yet there was another cat who would transform her being, a young she-cat who was kind and cheerful.

She left her den to catch the rays of the morning sun. Yellowfang laid down on the grass in the center of the camp, letting the warm, golden rays warm her shaggy dark gray coat. In the distance she saw Fireheart, who was picking up a shrew from the fresh-kill pile to take to Sandstorm.

_What a polite tom he is. _Yellowfang thought. _Delivering prey to a Clanmate. _At the same time she, felt a pang of misery in her heart. If only Brokenstar was like the ginger warrior; noble, selfless, brave, and always faithful to his Clan. Unfortunately, those traits did not apply to the former ShadowClan leader. Brokenstar would always be known as the cruel, bloodthirsty cat who abused kits and left many cats to die.

* * *

Clearing the images of her son from her mind, Yellowfang walked towards the medicine cat den and entered it. Laying in a mossy nest was a young dark gray she-cat. Her head perked up when she heard her mentor's pawsteps and she blinked her eyes.

''Good morning Yellowfang!'' she meowed, her blue eyes bright with happiness. ''How are you today?''

She couldn't help but purr in joy. Although her leg had been severely injured after being struck by a monster on the Thunderpath, the young stone-gray she-cat was still radiant with optimism. Yellowfang sat down to groom her apprentice's messy coat.

It felt odd grooming her long pelt, for the two she-cats were not related in any way. Yet Cinderpaw seemed to enjoy it. She viewed Yellowfang as a mother the same way how she saw Frostfur.

''Are you ready to look for herbs?'' Yellowfang asked. ''We have to exercise that leg of yours.'' The gray apprentice pricked her ears and rose to her paws, trying to stay balanced with a disfigured hind leg.

''Alright,'' Cinderpaw replied. ''I'll go eat first.'' She then hobbled out of the den. Yellowfang watched as she grabbed a blackbird from the pile and plopped it on the ground before going off to see her former mentor, Fireheart. Even though he was not her mentor anymore, Cinderpaw still visited regularly from the few days when her leg was starting to heal.

Cinderpaw limped up to the ginger tom and pressed up against him. In response, Fireheart entwined his ginger tail with Cinderpaw's bushy, dark gray one. She could see a hint of melancholy in his eyes, possibly guilt that he hadn't prevented his apprentice from leaving the camp.

After Cinderpaw had eaten her blackbird and said goodbye to her former mentor, to two she-cats headed for the gorse tunnel and entered the forest. The snow had melted and evaporated into the air. The foliage was turning green and lush again and the weather became warm and sunny. Newleaf had arrived.

Yellowfang parted her jaws to taste the air for any signs of herbs that were growing around them with Cinderpaw at her heels. The duo of gray cats walked through the woodland feeling the cool touch of the new green grass under their paws.

For the first time in her life, she seemed to be at peace with herself. Being in a Clan as a medicine cat, the life she used to have before having Brokenstar, seemed to soothe her. Although she had personally blinded her own son, he could no longer harm cats. He had also been captured by ThunderClan and was currently being held as a prisoner in the elder's den. Now that Brokenstar was harmless, Yellowfang finally felt safe.

Suddenly, she heard pawsteps behind her, and Cinderpaw was hobbling towards her with a cluster of marigold in her jaws. She set the herbs on the ground.

''Are these good?'' the gray apprentice asked. Yellowfang sniffed the herbs that she had found.

''Definitely,'' she replied. ''These will do just fine.'' She then gave Cinderpaw an affectionate lick on her ear, which caused her blue eyes to gleam with happiness.

''What else do we need?'' Cinderpaw asked.

''Horsetail,'' Yellowfang answered. ''It usually grows in damp, marshy areas, like ShadowClan territory.'' Cinderpaw picked up her marigold, and the two she-cats departed ThunderClan's forest for ShadowClan's coniferous marshes. They kept walking through the woodland until an acrid odor entered nostrils and they emerged from the bushes.

The Thunderpath was a long, gray stripe that parted through a vast green canvas. Cinderpaw stared at it with fear vivid in her eyes. This was where she had been lured by Tigerclaw and struck by a monster. The event killed off any chance she had of becoming a warrior.

Yellowfang gently nudged the young she-cat with her tail to get her going. ''Come along Cinderpaw,'' she meowed. ''It's not very far from here.'' Even though the gray she-cat was scared, she said nothing for she was holding a cluster of marigold in her mouth. Yellowfang sprinted across the Thunderpath with Cinderpaw at her heels, limping as fast as her three good legs could carry her.

When they crossed the Thunderpath, the young gray she-cat released a sigh of relief. Cinderpaw had crossed the Thunderpath safely for the first time since her accident. Subsequently, they entered ShadowClan territory.

Yellowfang laid awake in her nest, looking at the sleeping body of her apprentice. They had a great time today, being in the forest and collecting herbs. She seemed of have found Cinderpaw. She was everything she could have had in her kits with Raggedstar. Cinderpaw was loving and cheerful, something Brokenstar could never be.

* * *

Yellowfang and her apprentice stood outside the entrance to Mothermouth with Runningnose, Barkface, and Mudfur. it was time for Cinderpaw to become a full medicine cat after many moons of training.

Night lay heavily upon the forest. The half-moon glimmered in the black sky with a whitish-silver light.

''Are we all ready?'' Mudfur, RiverClan's medicine cat asked.

Runningnose nodded his head. ''We all are.'' The five cats subsequently entered the rocky tunnel that led inward. They walked in complete darkness before they saw a bright light.

''Wow!'' Cinderpaw exclaimed when the Moonstone came into view. It was a huge crystalline rock that shone with a radiant white light that illuminated the cave.

''Is this what the Moonstone looks like?'' she asked.

''Yes,'' Barkface replied, gazing at the huge, shiny rock.

''It's beautiful!'' Cinderpaw responded, her blue eyes wide with amazement.

When all of the cats were sitting in front of the Moonstone, Yellowfang began to recite the words that transformed medicine cat apprentices into full medicine cats. The words were ancient, and had been spoken by medicine cats since the beginning of the Clans.

''I, Yellowfang, medicine cat of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. She has trained hard to understand the ways of a medicine cat, and with your help she will serve her Clan for many moons.'' Yellowfang's orange gaze rested on Cinderpaw. ''Cinderpaw, do you promise to uphold the ways of a medicine cat, to stand apart from rivalry between Clan and Clan and to protect all cats equally, even at the cost of your life?''

Cinderpaw was silent for several heartbeats. She didn't know if she should reply to her mentor. Very deep down, a tiny part of her still wanted to be warrior, but she pushed that part away. ''I do,'' she meowed.

''Then by the powers of StarClan,'' Yellowfang declared. ''I give you your true name as a medicine cat. Cinderpaw, from this moment on you shall be known as Cinderpelt. StarClan honors your wisdom, and we welcome you as a full medicine cat of ThunderClan.''

Yellowfang affectionately rested her muzzle on the newly named medicine cat. In turn, Cinderpelt licked her mentor's shoulder.

''Cinderpelt! Cinderpelt!'' The four cats around them chanted, their voices joining together in a choir of joy.

Yellowfang gazed at Cinderpelt with loving eyes. This cat had become somewhat of a daughter to her. She was everything she had wanted in any of her kits. Her compassion and optimism had filled the former ShadowClan she-cat with so much life.

Cinderpelt truly was the daughter of her dreams.

* * *

**I've always wanted to write this one-shot, it was in my head for a couple of months and I decided to get it out.**

**I've always thought that Yellowfang probably wanted a daughter, since her son practically drove ShadowClan into near ruins. It kind of upsets me that Yellowfang and Cinderpelt's mentor and apprentice relationship was never really touched upon in the books, so I decided to expand on it.**

**I hope you enjoyed it and don't forget to leave a review.**


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